BS6 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ November 17, 1870. 



Providence, striving to give to every home health, comfort, and 

 happiness. Could not they be prevailed on to give in the 

 " Cottage Gardener " columns the benefit of their experience 

 for the good of others, who are only kept from the work from 

 want of a plan ? 



With the farmers it would perhaps be more difficult to deal. 

 Persuasion and example would avail but little, but could they 

 not be reached through the landlord ? What if the landlord 

 were to provide a properly qualified gardener, competent to 

 renovate the gardens attached to ftrcnlo ises ? This person 

 might be found by the landlord, the farmer paying him for his 

 labour at a rate fixed by the landlord, or the expense might 

 be wholly paid by the landlord in the first instance, the tenant 

 being charged with the interest of the outlay in respect of Btock 

 and improvements, the " keeping in order " being paid by the 

 tenant. I am sure that farmers, as a rule, would not object to 

 this sort of thing, but would do all in their power to further it. 

 The only difficulty would be in making sure of the person ap- 

 pointed having the requisite knowledge. I am not unmindful 

 of " A Young Gakdenek's Gkowl," but I do not think so few 

 gardeners as he states are able to advise as to a list of fruits, 

 and that without tasting, as he will learn by-and-by v. hen he 

 has to supply fruit for the kitchen and dessert. But any ob- 

 jection of that kind might be got over by the landlord's gardener 

 having the supervision of the gardens and the control of the 

 persons who attend to them. In that case nothing could be 

 cone to the detriment of either the landlord or tenant, as might 

 otherwise be the case were an inexperienced hand to cut down 

 what could not be replaced without entailing a serious loss on 

 the tenant, and he could be kept from planting what would 

 not be of any value to him, or not for a very long time. The 

 landlord might stipulate for a certain amount of flower, vege- 

 table, and fruit garden, and an orchard if thought necessary, to 

 each holding, and the occupiers could exercise their discretion 

 in what they would have it cropped with, always keeping from 

 them the power of interfering with the permanent subjects 

 without first consulting with the landlord or his agent. 



The gardener should be able to lay-out gardens, and practi- 

 cally understand every department of out-door gardening. On 

 some estates it would be necessary to have a superintendent, 

 with properly-qualified assistants. It has always appeared to 

 me remarkable that the gardening market should be over- 

 stocked, and jet there is no wonder when half the gardening 

 of the country is performed by persons styling themselves 

 gardeners, but knowing practically but little of it outside their 

 cwn minds. — G. Abbey. 



CLIMBING FERNS.— No. -3. 

 In my two previous articles I have confined myself to Ferns 

 whose fronds have the power of extending themselves, if not 

 indefinitely, at least to a very unusual length, by the continu- 

 ous growth of their points. We now, however, come to a 

 distinct set of plants, which, although they must undoubtedly 

 be accepted as climbing Ferns, yet owe their claim to this title 

 only from the extension of the rhizome which roots into or 

 around whatever it can affix itself to. Very fine objects can be 

 made with some of these by planting the dead stems of tree 

 Ferns in various parts of the fernery, and fastening upon them 

 the kinds with scandent rhizomes; or if no tree Fern stems ate 

 to be had, small cylinders of galvanised wire may be placed so as 

 to represent pillars or archways, and these, having been pre- 

 viously filled with peat and sphagnum moss, will be fitting re- 

 ceptacles for the kinds with creeping lhizomes presently to be 

 named. Fern-growers who have not a fernery in which their 

 pets can be planted in the open border need not despair, and, 

 certainly, must not neglect such plants as those treated of in 

 this article, because they will be even more appreciated in a col- 

 lection that ia confined to pot culture; to such I say, Pot 

 your dead Fern stem or your cylinder of wire, then fix the 

 creeping rhizomes to it, when, if duly supplied with mois- 

 ture, they will soon establish themselves, and the effect will be 

 as good as if they had been planted in the fernery borders. 



OLE AND HA. 

 This is a very elegant and thoroughly distinct genus of stove 

 Ferns, churacterised by their hairy rhizomes and Bimple 

 fronds, which are of firm texture with jointed stipes. The veins 

 are simple, sometimes forked, having a short venule termi- 

 nating near the midrib, on which the soii are situated, and 

 which are furnished with a reniform iodusium. These plants 

 adhere very closely to any congenial surface, and, as a natural 



consequence, the more nutriment they obtain, the larger fronds 

 they develope. Several more species than those here enu- 

 merated are known to exist, and when introduced in a living 

 state to this country will be valuable additions to our collections. 

 0. akticulata. — This is a beautiful Fern with entire linear- 

 lanceolate fronds from 10 to 15 inches long, tapering at either 

 end, and light shining green in colour. When treated in the 

 manner previously described, it produces a fine effect. It i3 a 

 native of the East Indies and the Mauritius. 



0. nodosa. — Like the preceding, this species produces simple 

 fronds, which are about the same shape and size as in that 



plant ; it is distinguished 

 from it, however, by its 

 black shining stipes, and 

 the darker green of its 

 fronds, part of one of which 

 is represented in the ac- 

 companying engraving. 0. 

 nodosa should be grown in 

 the same manner as before 

 mentioned, and if planted 

 upon the stem of a tree 

 Fern the effect is charming. 

 It is a native of the West 

 Indies. 



0. Wallichii. — This is a 

 somewhat rare kind, but 

 fully as beautiful as those 

 previously named. The 

 fronds are simple, varying 

 from 12 to 18 inches in 

 length, and from 1 inch to 

 11 inch in width, with 

 slightly undulating margins. The sori are large, light brown, 

 and situated very close to the costa or midrib. The colour is 

 bright light green. Native of the East Indies. 



0. NEKiiForuns can only be called a sub-scandent species, 

 but it is such a beautiful plant that I cannot refrain from in- 

 cluding it with the others. It has simple fronds about 12 inches 

 in length, arranged in a verticillate manner, which gives them 

 the appearance of large fans, and the effect it produces is so 

 strikingly distinct that it should be one of the first plants pro- 

 cured for a collection of Ferns. Native of both India and South 

 America. 



POLYBOTEYA. 



This genus belongs to the tribe Acrosticha?, although differ- 

 ing considerably in appearance from the plants we are apt to 

 associate in our minds with Acrostichum. They may be known 

 by their stout squamose rhizomes, bi-tripinnate fronds, free 

 pinnate veins, and contracted fertile fronds, which are entirely 

 covered on the under side with sporangia. Polybotryas are 

 large-growing plants, and climb trees to considerable heights. 

 In a large fernery where space for their development can be 

 afforded, they form truly noble ornaments, and should be 

 treated in the same manner as recommended for Oleandra. 



P. osmundacea. — In this plant we have boldness of character 

 well developed. It produces a stout creeping rhizome clothed 

 with long brown chaffy scales, and which climbs to consider- 

 able heights. Its fertile and sterile fronds are very dissimilar, 

 the latter are bi-tripinnate, from 2 to 3 feet long, with oblong 

 pinna tapering towards the apex, obtusely lobed, and of a rich 

 green. The fertile fronds are equal in size to those which are 

 sterile, but have all the pinnules contracted into linear seg- 

 ments, which are wholly covered with dark brown sori. It 

 requires stove heat, and forms a fine specimen. It seemB to be 

 abundant in Brazil, various parts of South America, and in the 

 West Indies. 



P. caudata. — Another superb strong-growing Fern with a 

 stout climbing scaly rhizome. The fronds are tripinnate, 

 lengthened out into a long tail-like point, as are also the pinna; ; 

 the pinnules are broad-oblong, rounded at the base, tapering 

 to a point, dentate at the edge?, and bright Bhining green in 

 colour, like P. osmundacea ; the fertile fronds are contracted, 

 the pinnules being linear, about 2 inches in lengih, slightly 

 eared at the base on the superior margin, and wholly sporangi- 

 ferous. It is a noble ornament in a large fernery. Native of 

 South America and the West Indies. 



aethropteeis. 

 This genus would appear to have no striking character or 

 characters to distinguish it, and it seems to me to be very near 

 to Nephrolepis, but is wanting in respect to the thin wiry 



